NZ leading world pastoral greenhouse gas research

An independent review
of the Pastoral Greenhouse Gas Research Consortium (PGGRC)
says it is producing world-leading research and is excellent
value for money.

The review, involving independent
experts and carried out by the Foundation for Research
Science & Technology was the highlight of the past year
Board Chairman Mark Leslie told the Annual General Meeting
of the Consortium in Wellington yesterday (14/9).

PGGRC is funded by key industry partners: Fonterra
Co-Operative Ltd, Meat & Wool New Zealand Ltd, Dairy
InSight, PGG-Wrightson Ltd, the New Zealand Fertiliser
Manufacturers Research Association Inc, DEEResearch Ltd, and
AgResearch Ltd along with Ravensdown Fertiliser Coop Ltd.
The Crown, through the Foundation for Research Science and
Technology, has matched this funding.

Associate members
of the Consortium are the National Institute for Water and
Atmosphere (NIWA) and the Ministry of Agriculture and
Forestry (MAF). Research providers and contributors are
AgResearch, Livestock Improvement Corporation (Boviquest),
Dexcel and Lincoln University.

Mr Leslie said the
organisation had helped develop the science, capability and
knowledge that were non-existent in 2002 when the Consortium
was established.

Over the past four years the Consortium
has invested about $14million in a range of scientific
programmes aimed at reducing agricultural greenhouse gases.
The review identified this as the most comprehensive
programme of its kind in the world.

In addition to direct
funding the agricultural sector has also funded other
productivity research, which has driven greater efficiency
leading to lower emissions per unit of product. Comparing
dairy production in 1990 with that in 2003 illustrates the
point. In 1990 a kg of milk solids carried a cost of 400g
of methane while in 2003 the same kg of milk solids could be
produced at a cost of 315g of methane. These significant
gains have come through farming animals more efficiently, Mr
Leslie said.

He said while there was no “immediate
silver bullet,” a number of mitigation solutions showed
promise and the Consortium was currently following up a
number of promising scientific opportunities ranging from
tackling microbes in the rumen of cattle, deer and sheep to
diet manipulation and selective breeding of livestock.

The approach has been to consider the whole farm system
and how mitigation technologies fit with day to day
farming.

PGGRC Manager Mark Aspin said the Consortium had
made “excellent progress” in the past four years. It
had dramatically advanced knowledge on the complexities of
the biological system in ruminants and tested at least six
promising technologies in New Zealand conditions.

“Farmers are gradually gaining an understanding of how
much methane their stock produce. Grazing animals loose
about 7-11 per cent of the energy they eat producing
methane. If we can find a way to cut down on the production
of methane in all grazing livestock then that energy will be
available for other productivity,” he said.

Now, in
the last year of its initial research programme, industry
participants are currently finalizing plans to continue the
work of the Consortium for the next five years.

“Given
the national impact of agriculture emissions, PGGRC will
need to exploit the research gains it has created in the
last four years if it is to reduce emissions to 1990
levels,” Mr Aspin said.

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